Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
Every summer, the apartment buildings of Istanbul, Ankara and other major cities begin to empty. Neighbors who have spent the winter sharing lifts, parking disputes, delivery couriers and the occasional suspicion that someone upstairs is moving furniture after midnight head off in different directions.
Coal miners from Doruk Mining, a subsidiary of Yıldızlar SSS Holding that made the headlines earlier this year, held a new sit-in protest in Ankara, demanding years of unpaid severance and termination benefits as promises were not kept.
The answer is no. Because seven years after breaking away from the AKP to found the Gelecek Party, it has become clear that the party itself has no future. Reading between the lines of his announcement that he will dissolve the party and step away from politics, one senses his acknowledgment that 'things are no longer working.'
In a surprising development, police have detained prominent pro-government journalist Cem Küçük in Istanbul, soon after he parted ways with İhlas Media Group.
A report by journalist Ebru Çelik of BirGün, who followed the story in person based on a tip and witnessed the events firsthand, proved that extras were gathered to act as supporters for a CHP party meeting for 950 lira (roughly $20) each. The story laid bare a case of manipulation between media and politics.
Turkish industrialists criticized a new United States’ decision to impose a 12.5% tariff on Turkish products under Section 301, warning that the move places key export sectors, especially textiles and apparel, at a severe disadvantage.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) has ruled against Turkey in a trade dispute brought by Beijing, declaring Turkish tariffs and severe import restrictions on Chinese electric and hybrid vehicles incompatible with global trade rules.
This summer, Turkey’s coast mostly held. A fire near Fethiye, a scare in Antalya’s Kepez district, a few homes emptied as a precaution and their residents returned to within a day. After last year, it has the feel of a reprieve, which is the most dangerous weather the region knows. Because we have all seen what the season can do.
Based on his experience as the British government’s Cyprus coordinator, Lord David Hannay once said: “No one has ever lost money betting against a Cyprus settlement.”
A live signing ceremony crowning Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi's visit to Ankara was disrupted when a Development Road agreement went unsigned, prompting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to intervene on camera and Al Zaidi to confront his own transport minister.
The corruption investigation into the Ahbap Association, founded by Turkish rock star Haluk Levent, has expanded with numerous celebrities summoned to testify.
Following the establishment of the new party, 44 lawmakers remained in the CHP — but it became clear from the first day that not all of them would support court appointed chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.